Oh my gosh, friends, it’s finally Thursday. In what feels like quite possibly the longest week ever, we’re finally on the waning edge and approaching the weekend. And not just any weekend, y’all, it’s Mothers Day Weekend.
Which means I can expect breakfast in bed, showers of gifts, cards and love and two days of total relaxation and pampering.
Just kidding, y’all. We’re not in that stage of life right now. What I can really expect is a weekend filled with gymnastics, baseball, football and church if we’re lucky. And that’s just fine with me.
When I was an early mom, I’m talking a mom of newborns and infants and toddlers, all I really wanted was to sleep in and not change a diaper or two. Newborn exhaustion is like nothing you have ever felt. It’s like an oppressive sweater in a Texas July. You can’t take it off, but it’s also slowly smothering you. It’s exhausting to be the food source, the nurturing source, the everything source for a little human that honestly won’t survive unless you do your job.
So early Moms, you deserve a nap. You deserve a day of no diapers. No dishes. Just rest.
Now that I’m knee deep in the elementary years, my wants have changed. I’m much more rested and my kids will pretty much stay alive without too much intervention on my part. Sure, they may not thrive, but they’ll live. But exhaustion takes on a different form once your kids grow. It’s emotionally exhausting to be the moral compass and disciplinarian and secretary and taxi driver and homework monitor and therapist all wrapped into one. It’s soul-wearying to have to repeat yourself 300 times just to get a pair of socks picked up off the floor and some teeth brushed. And it’s demoralizing to see your hard work, whether it’s physical work of, say, making a dinner or moral work of teaching the same lesson over and over and over, discarded as trash at worst or just completely ignored at best.
So to elementary and middle school moms, you deserve a day where everyone does exactly as you say. You deserve a day where you don’t have to tell anyone what to do. And you deserve a day of peace. 
And as I look forward to those scary high school years, I can imagine that the worry and the wear and tear of teenage hormones and independence-seeking is a constant strain on your heart. Guiding a young adult towards maturity with grit and grace while keeping your sanity in check has to be a daily struggle. With the constant barrage of threats to a teenagers soul in this day and age I can’t even imagine the stakes of parenting one today and the battles that are bound to take place as you enforce safe boundaries that your kids will certainly detest.
So for parents of teenagers and young adults, you deserve a day where curfew is met with happy compliance. You deserve a day where boundaries are respected and your currently hormonal maniac teenager actually reminds you that, hey, they still love you. Even if you’re the meanest mom on the planet because you won’t let them go to a co-ed sleepover (stay strong on that one, momma. All adults know that nothing good happens after midnight).
And finally, for moms of adults, like my very own mom. You may be near or you may be far from your child. You may have a great relationship or it may be strained, or somewhere in between. You may be a grandmother now with grandkids you love arguably more than your own prickly kid. Wherever you are, you deserve a thank you. Just a thank you.
Because Moms are a safe space. They are a home base.
Moms are cheerleaders and coaches. They are our biggest fan and strongest support.
Moms are character makers. And strength finders. Moms are what make us who we are.
My mom, she doesn’t live close. It’s hard being far away. Our relationship has run the gamut from good to great to terrible to strained and back again. I am not an easy child, never was, and I know that she was gifted many sleepless nights because I was rebellious and headstrong and a challenge in many ways. I am certain I will be repaid two-fold for this. She is the mom who tells me that I am worthy even when I don’t believe it. She is the mom who cries big gigantic crocodile tears when I’m hurting and big gigantic crocodile tears of joy when I’m successful. She is the mom who had to sit back and watch me go, to move first to NYC into an apartment with crime scene tape on the door next to mine (true story), then further to Atlanta then to California and now to Texas. She’s had to make peace with this distance, and I know it hasn’t been easy. She’s been there for my worst and for my best. Always a phone call away. Always willing to help with whatever resources she has. Always loving, no matter what.
No mom is perfect. Not a one. We’re all working with all of the tools we have in our toolboxes, and some are arguably more stocked than others. But all of us are trying.
And for that, we all deserve some love. However it comes. Whatever it looks like, I hope that your day is just as you need it, Mama. For one day, I hope you feel the love that you put out there come back to you two-fold.
Healthy Oat Flour Banana Muffins
And for my non-mom readers, but maybe the ones that have moms they want to celebrate, what better way to celebrate them than with some healthy banana muffins in bed? No, seriously, these are actually tasty healthy oat flour banana muffins. Not cardboard. This is a riff off of my go-to regular banana muffin (recipe here) that has been on regular rotation in our house for years. Wanting to cut back on sugar and flour and fat, I decided to play around with different flours. The idea that I can take cheap old oatmeal and throw it in a blender to make flour makes me giddy with nerdy foodie glee. It honestly takes two seconds and is really a fun way to add some healthy fiber into your diet.
I love the way the texture of these muffins strikes a balance somewhere between a muffin and a breakfast cookie and the fact that they get better the longer they sit is amazing. Make these for your mom or your grandmom, or even if you’re being selfish and you make them just for yourself, I won’t complain. They’re worth it.
Peace, love, and Moms,
Meaghan
Healthy Oat Bran Banana Muffins
Ingredients
- 2 very ripe bananas, mashed
- 2 tablespoons coconut oil, melted
- 2 tablespoons butter, melted
- 1/2 cup coconut sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 cup oat flour (about 1 1/4 cup quick cooking oats pulsed in a blender until flour consistency)
- 1/4 cup oat bran
- 1/4 all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 cup chocolate chips
Directions
- Step 1 Preheat the oven to 350 and line muffin tin with liners.
- Step 2 Combine the bananas, sugar, coconut oil and butter together and stir until combined.
- Step 3 Add in egg and mix until thoroughly incorporated.
- Step 4 Sprinkle flours, oat bran, salt and baking soda on top.
- Step 5 Add in chocolate chips.
- Step 6 Stir just until completely mixed, do not overstir or you will get tough muffins!
- Step 7 Fill muffin cups about 2/3 full.
- Step 8 Bake for 20 minutes or until browned (the tops should spring back when lightly pressed).
- Step 9 Let cool for 5 minutes before moving to a rack to cool the rest of the way.
- Step 10 ENJOY!
Welcome to BurntToast! My name is Meaghan, and this is my safe space, a place where we can share stories, share recipes and share life. It’s my dream that you can come here, kick your shoes off and pour yourself a glass of wine while you read, laugh, and maybe even hop into the kitchen. This is my heart, for all of you to see. And ALL are welcome here.